Breaking the Rules
by sharonflynns
Summary: There are worse things that Sharon Raydor could do than sleep in / oneshot / fluffy / mild angst


Newlywed Andrew Flynn sat at his desk staring at his wedding photo, as he anxiously tapped his pen on the wooden surface. The lieutenant across from him looked up and give him an annoyed look. Normally the older detective would have yelled at him by now, but cut him some slack considering it was obvious he was worrying about his wife.

It was the third day in a row that Sharon was listening to the doctor and coming in to work later than usual. Andy knew that she was probably laying in bed with her Macbook like he'd caught her doing the other day. Less than an hour after he had arrived at the station, he got a notification that Sharon Flynn had liked one of Nicole's posts on Facebook. Busted.

He'd rather her be resting but at least she wasn't at work, where the stress levels were high, and things were always coming up unexpected. She promised she would stay in bed, and as long as he had her word, he trusted her.

Even though their bed was probably the safest place for her to be, he still worried when she was alone. Not being able to see her until noon, drove him insane and there wasn't a second that went by when he didn't want to pick up his cellphone and call her, just to hear her voice and know that she was okay.

He thought about texting her. A phone call would wake her up, but a text message was only a quick vibration. Maybe just one text wouldn't hurt, just to check in with her. He pulled out his phone and typed, "hey honey, everything okay?"

He saw that it had been delivered and waited for the read receipt. He stared at his phone for a matter of minutes before Provenza began summoning him to the murder board. "Flynn, over here!"

New information had come up with the murder, and time seemed to have slipped by quickly. Andy looked at the clock on the wall that read 11:30am. Sharon was supposed to be at the office in half an hour, surely she would be out of bed and getting ready by now.

He snuck away from the other detectives and picked up his phone, only to see a blank lockscreen. Now he was really worrying. He opened his phone and texted her again. "Sharon, you okay?"

He gave it a few minutes before growing too impatient and decided to just give her a call. He hit the icon on the corner of the screen and counted the rings all the way to eight before they stopped and her warm voice filled his ears. "You've reached Commander Raydor, please leave your name and phone number and I'll return your call as soon as possible." He heard the beep and cussed under his breath, hitting the end-call button.

He had a terrible feeling in the pit of his stomach. It wasn't like Sharon to not answer her phone calls, especially when she was supposed to be at home, doing absolutely nothing.

Then a thought came to mind: maybe she was just driving. Sharon never answered her cell when she was on the road unless it was work related, and even then so, she liked to keep it brief.

He had convinced himself that he was probably just overreacting, and she was already on the way to the station. He rejoined the others and let his mind ease at the thought of her being on her way and him being able to see her soon.

Andy had lost track of time once again, and before he knew it, everyone was breaking for lunch and he was left alone in the murder room, now looking at the clock reading 12:20pm. His stomach twisted and his anxiety slowly returned. It'd been forty-five minutes since he'd last tried calling her, hours since he'd first texted her and both of which had remained unnoticed. He'd had enough.

Andy grabbed his jacket and rushed to the breakroom, letting Provenza know he was going to the condo to check on Sharon. His partner nodded, and all the others in the room shared a similar worried face, but he didn't have time to explain. He ran out to the car and pulled out of the parking garage, fast enough that Sharon would have been freaking out if she were there.

Oh god, he prayed she would be alright when he got there. Horrible thoughts filled his mind the entire drive there, taunting him like a devil on his shoulder. Every red light pulled him deeper and deeper into the pit of worry that he was digging himself. He always hated the L.A. traffic, but of all days he hated it the most right then.

He parked the car half crooked in the garage below their building, not really caring if he got ticketed or rear-ended. He tore up the stairs, not bothering to wait for the outdated elevator that would have taken forever.

Once he reached the foyer, he hit the elevator button and tapped his foot anxiously as he waited for it to reach the floor. His suspicions only worsened. Somewhere between the stairs and the elevator he began playing back her words in his head. "Andy, if anything were to happen, please look after my children."

They were cutting into his heart, deeper by the second. He heard the ding, sounding too much to him like a death knell. The doors couldn't open fast enough as he found himself practically running down the hallway to their door.

His hands fumbled with the keys. "...If anything were to happen," her voice repeated.

"Oh, come on!" he cried, shoving the key in the door and twisting it back and forth until eventually it swung open.

"Sharon," he tried calling, but it came out as more of a sigh.

His eyes scanned the room, like he was doing a sweep for work, and when her brown hair wasn't in sight, his next target was the bedroom.

'This is it', he thought, approaching the door.

His hand gripped the handle, and he prayed once more that she was safe and sound on the other side. Maybe taking a bath, or folding laundry, having lost track of time.

The door creaked open, revealing their room in complete darkness. He gave his eyes some time to adjust before stepping in, and finding her laying soundly in their bed.

He let out his breath that he'd been holding since he left the station, and moved toward the other end of the bed, where her head was. His fingers brushed through the wavy strands of brown, covering the pillow. She was fine; She had been sleeping this whole time.

Her phone was resting on the night table, charging cord plugged into her phone but not the wall. It must have been like that all night.

He plugged it in properly, and sat down in the middle of the bed, careful not to crush her legs. "Sharon, honey," his hand brushed her cheek, as the other found its place on the curve of her side.

She turned her face into his hand, her eyes remaining shut. Clearly, she needed the extra hours of sleep.

His thumb stroked the softness of her cheek, as he took in the beautiful sight of his sleeping wife.

Very rarely was he awake and not her; Sharon always the first awake and last to fall asleep. Watching her now reminded him of months ago, the first time she'd invited him to stay the night; Not asking for anything more than his company, but he relished her invitation, no matter the intention. Her hair was longer at the time, as was her nightgown, as he spent some time just watching her rest peacefully next to him.

"Andy?" She slurred, the low moan of sleep in her voice.

"Yeah, it's me sweetheart."

She stirred, but the green behind her eyes remained hidden. "Come to bed," she lulled, reaching for him.

He knew that they – or at least he – needed to get back downtown, but he was finding it hard to refuse that offer. Provenza could hold the fort down for a little longer.

He crawled in next to her, spooning her from behind and resting his chin in the crook of her neck. The warmth of her body pressed against him, and the steady sound of her breathing put him to sleep within minutes. He certainly had no intention of falling asleep, but she seemed to have that calming effect on him.

Hours later they were still asleep, Sharon now laying on her stomach, head resting on his chest while her fingers gripped his shirt, as they often did when she was deep in a dream. Andy snored softly, one arm around her and the other resting just below her waist.

A soft knock came from the other end of the door, but neither woke from the sound.

"Mom?"

The door slowly opened, as Rusty stuck his head in cautiously. Ever since the first time he'd forgot to knock, he made sure he would never make the mistake twice.

He saw Andy and Sharon curled up in bed together and although he was confused why they weren't at the station, he found it kind of sweet.

Part of him wanted to leave them be, but he knew that couldn't leave the room without an explanation for Provenza.

He took a step into the room, making sure they were clothed first. "Mom..." He repeated.

Sharon blinked her eyes open, reaching for his hand resting on her side, before finally coming to.

"Mom, Lieutenant Provenza has been texting me for the past couple hours asking me where you guys are."

She batted her eyes a few times, adjusting to the light streaming in from the hall, and reached for tapped her fingers on the back of the hand on her. "Andy, wake up hon."

Rusty waited for them to gather themselves, while Andy woke up and Sharon reached for her glasses on the nightstand. "What time is it?" She asked.

Rusty checked his phone and answered, "It's almost 3pm."

Her eyes grew wide before she began pushing down the sheets, to reveal her still in pajamas, midday. "Mom, are you okay?"

Sharon never slept in, especially this late.

"Yes, I'm fine," she answered. "My lieutenants seem to think that I'm too fragile to start work on time, so I've been sleeping in the past few days."

"Until 3?" Rusty questioned, in the interrogating tone he'd learned from his adoptive mother.

Andy answered this time. "She wasn't answering my texts all morning, so I came to check on her and I must have fallen asleep."

Rusty rolled his eyes and left the room, satisfied that they were alright.

"We really broke the rules today, didn't we?" Andy said, teasing his wife.

A snort followed by a light smack on the shoulder came as a defeated response.


End file.
